Bengals incidentally made an enemy of a new rival player during the 2024 NFL Draft

Many were surprised when the Cincinnati Bengals selected Jermaine Burton with the 80th overall pick in this year's NFL Draft. Devontez Walker was one of them.

Walker, who was eventually drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the fourth round, revealed on The Lounge Podcast that he expected to be drafted by the Bengals at that spot.

"I thought it was gonna be the Bengals," Walker said. "I met with them the most pre-draft."

Walker mentioned that he met with practically every team aside from the Ravens, which goes to show how random the draft can be if you follow which teams meet with which players.

But deception can have unforeseen consequences.

Now that Walker is in the same division as the Bengals, the team who passed on him, he's looking forward to making a statement when he faces them.

“I got a bone to pick with Cincy,” Walker said. “That’s where I thought I was going but they took [Burton] at that spot.

"Cincinnati, that game is gonna get rough.”

The Bengals were extremely happy to take Burton 80th overall instead of Walker despite all of their apparent interest in the latter. Burton is already making strides with Joe Burrow , and he's got a unique history with Ja'Marr Chase .

Burton's fit in Cincinnati is like a glove , but Walker has ample motivation to prove them wrong now.

Not only did Walker get passed up for Burton, he fell an entire round later in the process. The former North Carolina Tar Heel was projected to go off the board sometime between the second and third round. Falling a round after expectation may only add fuel to the fire.

Walker is under contract for the next four years and will get at least two chances a season against Cincinnati. The Bengals better be prepared to take him seriously.

Related: Bengals rookie WR Jermaine Burton's best attributes get compared to three-time Pro Bowler